Thoughts and opinions about how science, especially biology, is portrayed in the movies. I love the movies but as a professional scientist, I have trouble with the often negative and/or erroneous portrayal of science in movies and TV. That, and it's just plain fun to pick apart bad science.

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Welcome!

Hi everyone, and welcome to my blog! (or my latest attempt at a blog. :P) Although I have attempted to write a personal blog in the past, this one will be different. Rather than being about my personal life, this blog will be about how science is portrayed (or mis-portrayed) in the movies. Since so many of us discuss this all the time--from the little discrepancies we find funny to outright serious errors that drive us crazy--I decided to capture all this in a place we can share and discuss them!

I was finally inspired when my friend Lisa called me up earlier this week after watching The Fifth Element again. It's been years since I last watched it, but apparently the main character is supposed to be "perfect" because...(drumroll, please)...she has multiple helices of DNA instead of a regular double-helix. This drove Lisa nuts but her family could not understand it. She complained to me and I had to agree with her. We even ended up having a protracted discussion about all the genetic problems Leeloo would have as a multiple-heliced gal. So, to honor Lisa, my first entry will be about The Fifth Element!

Others to come include Spiderman (love the movie but the genetics stuff drove me nuts), X-Men (which I re-watched recently--and also love--but realized there are a ton of errors about genetics and mutation in it), GATTACA (a well-done sci-fi flick), and others like Outbreak, which is a fun movie but quite possibly one of the least scientifically accurate movies made. Ever.

I intend for this blog to be fun -- the equivalent of watching CSI or ER and pointing out all the silly errors in the shows. And, maybe it will start some interesting discussions. I think it is great that Hollywood is putting more science, and bioscience especially, in their movies. So the point is NOT to say we hate all these movies. I think that most of them we love, but picking apart the science is a separate activity that is fun on its own since it gets your mind working.

Do you have any movies you want to discuss? Send me suggestions if you'd like!

Also, I will try to post surveys about movies and science from time to time on this site. The first poll is already up, at the top right of the screen. Be sure to vote!

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About Me

I live in California, the home of both Hollywood and the Biotech Industry. I work at a biopharmaceutical company and have degrees in biochemistry, genetics, and biotechnology. I am also a Texan, which means I have strong opinions and like to share them. ;) Thanks for taking the time to visit my site!